Tag Archives: Video Ingestion

I remember building a companion app for the Windows desktop that pulled music data from iTunes and Gracenote. Gracenote boasts:

“Gracenote technology is at the heart of every great entertainment experience, and is supported by the largest source of music metadata on the planet..”

Gracenote, in conjunction with the iTunes API / data allowed me to personalize the user experience beyond what iTunes provided out of the box. X-Ray IMDb on Amazon Video also enriches the experience of watching movies and television hosted on Amazon Video .

While watching a movie using Amazon Video, you can tap the screen, and get details about the specific scene, shown in the foreground as the media continues to play.

“Go behind the scenes of your favorite movies and TV shows with X-Ray, powered by IMDb. Get instant access to cast photos, bios, and filmographies, soundtrack info, and trivia. “

IMDb is an Amazon company, which in his infinite foresight, in 1998, Jeff Bezos, founder, owner and CEO of Amazon.com, struck a deal to buy IMDb outright for approximately $55 million and attach it to Amazon as a subsidiary, private company.

The Internet Movie Database (abbreviated IMDb) is an online database of information related to films, television programs and video games, including cast, production crew, fictional characters, biographies, plot summaries, trivia and reviews, operated by IMDb.com, Inc., a subsidiary of Amazon. As of June 2017, IMDb has approximately 4.4 million titles (including episodes), 8 million personalities in its database,[2] as well as 75 million registered users.

In Amazon’s infinite wisdom again, they are looking to stretch both X-Ray and the IMDb property to budding film artists looking to cultivate and mature their following.

Approach to Adoption of X-Ray IMDb / Amazon Video

Manage your photos and the credits you are Known For on IMDbPro, IMDb, and Amazon Video”

How then is new media content, such as Actor’s photos, and Filmography [approved] and updated by IMDb.

Furthermore, what is the selection process to get indie content [approved] and posted to Amazon video. Is there a curation process whereby not every indie artist is hosted, e.g. creative selection process is driven by Amazon Video business.

To expand the use of X-Ray powered by IMDb, what are the options for alternate Media Players and Streamers? e.g. is YouTube a possibility, hosting and streaming content embedded with X-Ray capabilities? Does Amazon X-Ray enabled capabilities require the Amazon Video player?

X-Ray Current Support: Amazon Hosted and Streaming

X-Ray is available on the Amazon Video appin the US, UK, Germany, and Austria for thousands of titles on compatible devices including Amazon Fire Tablets and TV/Stick, iOS and Android mobile devices, and the web. To access X-Ray, tap the screen or click on the Fire TV remote while the video is playing.”

Amazon X-Ray Studios, Video Editing/Integration Desktop Application

Indie producers may leverage X-Ray Studios to integrate IMDb overlay content to enhance their audience’s experience. Timecodes are leveraged to sync up X-Ray content with the video content.